Has anyone got a Nike fuelband?

[VenetiaLanyon]

What do you think of it? Am thinking of getting one for DH for his birthday.
Thanks

[mercury7]

Venetia, I was very tempted to get one but ultimately went for a garmin with heart rate monitor...sorry thats not much help is it

[VenetiaLanyon]

Is it any good, Mercury? I've had difficulties getting those things to pick up the GPS, so thought something else migh be worth a try.

[mercury7]

i think it's good & i find it usefull, especially i like to use the heart rate moniter to keep in a certain zone while exercising.
I'm of the opinion (based on my probably self serving research) thats it's better to keep your heart rate lower for a long period.

I've not had problems with the satelite, and, tbh i'd be just as happy with only the hr moniter provided i had a nice graph to look at on my computer afterwards:o

[VenetiaLanyon]

Thanks Mercury. I'm still quite tempted by the Fuelband...

[mercury7]

as I see it the advantage of the fuel band is that you can use it to track your activity 24/7
I find it very useful to record heart rate when training but a heart rate monitor is a pain to wear 24/7..specially for a bloke (women can attach to bra strap)

If the fuel band (or fit bit) had could measure heart rate I'd have got one!

[RubyrooUK]

I've got one! What do you want to know? Hit me up with the questions...

[VenetiaLanyon]

Ooh marvellous. Does it seem to pick up everything you do, and is it all fairly simple to use for those with little technological patience?

[RubyrooUK]

Okay, will drivel on a bit now and you can ignore the bits you know....if you can't be bothered with my explanation, I think this is a fair review.

The Fuelband essentially just measures steps walked, calories burnt and Nike's own activity measure "fuel". (It also acts as a watch and has the time on it.) It resets each night and you use Bluetooth every so often to sync your band with your iPhone app.

At first, I found measuring activity in fuel to be irritating because it doesn't equate to anything else. It isn't a measure like calories that everyone is familiar with.

But actually now I think it is pretty clever as it is a better all-round gauge of your activity levels than, say, a pedometer. For example, I notice if I am moving around a lot, lifting things and so on, my fuel measure goes up.

So on a day when I walk a lot but do little else, my fuel might be lower than a day when I have lifted lots, been up and down stairs a bit and done a moderate walk. I think fuel is actually a more accurate way of seeing your total activity for any one day than just looking at steps etc.

The Nike + system lets you set goals for yourself. For example, an average day for me is around 2500 fuel. A day with exercise is well over 3000. So I find it useful to check my band occasionally because if I am close to my goal, it pushes me to be a little bit more active than I otherwise would be.

The iPhone app lets you see how much fuel you have built up each day, how many miles you have walked, how many calories burnt etc. You can also look at your week, month etc to see any patterns in your activity levels.

Is it totally accurate all the time? No. Sometimes it thinks I have done a few steps in the car. It finds it hard to pick up my steps when I push the pushchair. But these are pretty minor. I think the Fuelband might be a little bit out each day but gets the general sense of my activity levels well enough.

I like it because I am a bit geeky and it turns being active into a game or challenge for me. I love looking at my "scores" on the app. (Yes, yes, I know.) You can compete against friends but I choose not to, mainly because I don't want my friends to know I am this tragic.

There is very little functionality so anyone could use it. It has a really easy set up guide. The only thing you need is an iPhone or a computer to follow your progress.

[VenetiaLanyon]

Thanks Ruby, that's most helpful, think I'm sold

[RubyrooUK]

Hope your DH likes it. I love mine (as you can probably tell - I don't work for Nike...). I love anything with an app.

My DH took the piss out of my Fuelband love but now he is secretly jealous and every so often makes comments about "oh maybe I should get one...they're stupid of course but it might help me stay fit a bit better...".

I am betting he will have one by the end of the year.

[VenetiaLanyon]

I'm betting I might too! Thanks Ruby

[TheFallenNinja]

Had mine for nearly a year. Love it.